Various Braille products are available for blind and low vision users for use in taking notes. These include personal computers having a keyboard and a refreshable Braille display and/or synthesized speech for reading text outloud. The keyboard may be of a conventional QWERTY type or a Braille keyboard. In some cases, the computer may have synthesized speech capability for reading digital text which was entered through a keyboard or which is obtained from other sources, such as from a CD-ROM, from a scanner, from the computer's internal memory or from a local or a global network.
Small special purpose portable computers, sometimes known as notetakers, are available for blind and low vision users. For example, the Braille'n Speak notetaker manufactured and sold by Freedom Scientific Inc. includes a standard Perkins-style Braille keyboard for inputting information which is stored in an internal memory. In response to a single command, stored information is read back to the user using a built-in speech synthesizer. In order to minimize the product weight and cost, the product does not have a Braille display. Notetakers also are available with a conventional QWERTY keyboard for users who prefer this type of keyboard or who are not skilled in Braille.
Notetakers also are available with an integral Braille display located adjacent the keyboard to allow users to read stored text. The Braille display consists of a row of Braille cells. Each cell has a grid of pins which can be selectively raised to form letters and characters in Braille. These notetakers are larger, heavier and more costly than notetakers which do not have a Braille display.
In addition to being useful for taking notes, some notetakers include software for performing other functions which are commonly found on a laptop computer, such as software for maintaining a calendar for the user and for maintaining a contact list of names, address and telephone numbers. These notetakers can function as a personal digital assistant (PDA).
Light weight notetakers are particularly useful for students, business persons and those who travel, since they are easily carried. The lightest and most portable notetakers do not include a Braille display. Consequently, users desiring the lightest weight product have had to forego products having an integral refreshable Braille display. At times, it is useful for the user to have a refreshable Braille display for these notetakers, for example, to facilitate reviewing and editing notes. Users would sometimes connect their notetakers to personal computers which are connected to a refreshable Braille display for reading and editing information stored in the notetaker.